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That’s the secret hope I cling to. Although, I probably have a better chance of getting runover by a Mack Truck than making out with Ty Nelson. But a girl can dream, right?
Before I can respond, a deep male voice clears his throat. Caught off guard by the interruption, we both swing around only to find piercing blue eyes watching us.
“Well, well, well...speak of the devil,” Lizzie murmurs before beelining for the counter and propping her elbows on the smooth surface. “Hey, Ty.”
Heat fills my cheeks at the thought of him overhearing our conversation.
“Hi, Lizzie.” His gaze slides from her to me, where it settles.
Even though the gold chain and pendant are delicate and light against my skin, it feels as if they are being singed into my collarbone. My hand rises to touch the necklace before I force it back to my side.
“Hey, Danielle.”
I give him a wave in return. The longer he holds my stare, the more heated my face becomes. Any moment, I’m going to self-combust behind the counter of Orange Julius. An awkward silence descends as I wrack my brain for something to say.
“So...” Lizzie pipes up, filling the void of conversation and drawing our attention to her, “Any reason, in particular, you stopped by?”
“Oh,” Ty blinks, “yeah.”
When he doesn’t say anything more, Lizzie grows restless before straightening to her full height. “And that would be?”
He points to the menu board hanging on the wall behind us. “A large Julius Original, please.”
Her face scrunches. “You stopped by to get a Julius Original?”
“Umm,” his gaze darts away, “they’re really good.”
With a roll of her eyes, she huffs out an exasperated breath before shoving away from the counter and shuffling over to the machine. “I’ll get right on it.” Lizzie gives me a pointed look before grabbing a large Styrofoam cup and filling it. “Dani, would you mind ringing him up while I do this?”
“Sure.” I force my feet into motion, closing the distance between us before punching a few buttons on the cash register. The drawer slides open, and Ty hands over two crisp dollar bills. It only takes a few moments to make change. As I give him the coins, our fingers brush, and a little zip of electricity sizzles across my flesh.
My eyes widen before snapping to his.
Did he feel that, or is it all in my head?
The way his attention stays locked on mine makes me wonder if he’s as aware of the strange sensation humming in the air as I am. A horde of butterflies wings their way to life in the pit of my belly.
After a moment, his focus dips to my collarbone. “The necklace looks good on you.”
My fingers flutter over the tiny pendant. “Thank you; I love it. You didn’t have to get me anything.”
His gaze flickers toward Lizzie, who is taking her sweet damn time at the drink machine, before returning to me. “I wanted to. Graduating from high school is a big deal, and it should be celebrated.” There’s a beat of silence before he adds, “Brett mentioned you’ll be attending State in the fall.”
“Yeah.” I really hope he doesn’t think I’m some lovesick schoolgirl following him there. “They have a great dance program,” I blurt. “I’m lucky they accepted me.”
“I’ve watched you dance. They’re the lucky ones.”
Even though we’re at the mall, and people are laughing and chattering, walking past us with shopping bags in hand, the world shrinks until it only encompasses the two of us. It’s the strangest feeling. One I’ve never experienced before. I couldn’t look away from him if I—
“Here you go,” Lizzie says loudly, shattering the moment as she thrusts the large container toward Ty, “one large Julius Original.”
When neither of us responds, she shoots a glance over her shoulder before leaning against the counter and dropping her voice. “You know the main ingredients are just orange juice concentrate, sugar, water, milk, and ice cubes, right?”
Ty’s brows shoot up. “Well, I do now.”
“Apparently that’s,” she makes air quotes with her fingers, “top secret information they don’t want getting out.” She snorts. “Like people care.”
He takes a pull from his straw. “It’s still pretty tasty.”
“One of the perks to the job is that we get them for free.” She wrinkles her nose. “I’ve drunk about a hundred since we started working here. If I have one more, I’ll ralph all over the place.”
“It’s doubtful that would go over well with the management.”
With a scowl, she tosses a glance toward the backroom. “Probably not.”
Ty takes another drink before changing the subject. “Did you guys hear about the party tonight at Miller’s lake house?”
Lizzie perks up, all thoughts of the frozen beverage she’s consumed this summer forgotten. “Chad Miller? Didn’t he graduate with your class?”
“Yup, that’s the one.”
She shakes her head before throwing a—we are so going to that party look my way.
